Port of Call -- Vigo/Bayona La Real

The Royal Princess is not the fastest ship to ply the seas, averaging 20 knots (37 kph/23 mph), so we entered the English Channel the day after our Hamburg sailing.  It was after breakfast when I asked Glen if what I was seeing from our balcony were the famous White Cliffs of Dover (350 ft/110 m high) on the coast of Kent.  Sure enough they were!  I'd never seen them before so was very excited.  Glen had his binoculars out in minutes.  Being a clear day, we could see Dover Castle, founded in the 11th century and England's largest castle.  Its proximity to the coast of France meant it has always been a strategic fortification.  In the 1800s, a complex of barrack tunnels were constructed and these were used as an air-raid shelter/hospital in WWII.  It was also the headquarters for the military telephone exchange.  Looming nearby are the Swingate Transmitting Masts (364 ft/111 m) used as radar stations during the war to detect incoming aircraft.  Now they transmit microwaves.

On our next day at sea, we crossed the Bay of Biscay but we might as well have been in the middle of the ocean as there was no land in sight. Shipping traffic kept Glen close to his binoculars (from Canadian Tire and the best $200 we've ever spent) and spotted a Gannet flying near the ship.

The Royal Princess aside from being slow is a huge ship, 1083 ft/ 330 m long and can carry 3560 people. She was christened by Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Cambridge, hence the 'royal' name.  Not every port can handle her so it took some time to find ones that could on our new itinerary.  Vigo, Spain stepped to the plate and the Princess tour staff scrambled to organize 8 tours of the area.  We attended a lecture on the area as we had no idea what to expect.  One tour was to Santiago de Compostela, the church with relics of the apostle, James and is one of the stops on the Pilgrims' route.  Our friend, Monica, had walked the Spanish portion of this pilgrimage (100 kms) so we felt taking a bus to the site was cheating.

Vigo is the largest city in the Galicia (northwest) area of Spain, close to the northern Portuguese border.  Its name means village (Vicus) in Latin but it was only recorded as a real village in the 15th century.  The Englishman, Francis Drake occupied it (1589) after he helped defeat the Spanish Armada (1588) and there is said to be ships in the harbour still bearing gold from the New World that Drake sank.  Another claim to fame is Jules Verne who used the harbour in his book 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.

We enjoyed the morning watching the comings and goings of the port, even spotting some dolphins cavorting in the harbour.  While having lunch, the Party Band played some great songs and kept us entertained.  It was a warm day in Spain and I began to regret not packing shorts (hey, I thought I'd be in the north Atlantic).

Our tour involved walking and wine (it was our theme after all).   First though our bus stopped at a church (Capela Da Guia).  Perched on La Guia Hill, it offered great views of Vigo and its port.   Then it was off to Bayona La Real (sometimes written Baiona).  This tourist town was founded in 140 BC and throughout its history was either Spanish or Portuguese.  The Old Town is dominated by Monterreal Castle built in the 16th century.  Nowadays, it's a tourist attraction and our destination.    the Hotel Parador Conde De Gondomar is part of the castle complex which offers incredible view of the bay and its islands.  Paradores are luxury accommodations created in castles, monasteries, and fortresses throughout Spain.

It was a warm, sunny day so our local wine and tapas were served on a terrace of the hotel.  Each region of Spain has its own version of tapas and Bayona is no different.  The word 'tapas' actually means 'to cover' and a theory is it began as a piece of bread one put on top of a glass of sweet wine to keep the fruit flies away.  Bartenders then used salty meat to cover the wine which encouraged patrons to drink more.  However, there seems to be many stories on how tapas began but suffice to say they usually have salty meat, olives, seafood or cheese.  There were also sweet versions in Bayona which attracted Glen's attention.

Not everyone on our bus was up for a walking tour so those who were followed our guide down into the town.  We walked passed Chapel to our Lady of the Garden and saw Belladonna flowers.  These are sometimes called Naked-Lady Lilies as they don't have leaves.  Our tour wound through the grounds of Monterreal Castle and down to the beach.  A same-sized replica of La Pinta (see photo), Christopher Columbus' ship sat in the harbour and we learned the real one arrived March 1st, 1493 with the news he had found the New World.   There is a commemorative plaque and the actual anchor from La Pinta on display nearby.

Modern houses and flats surround the old town because Bayona attracts many summer visitors --  the population increases from about 10, 000 to 50,000.  The main street is modern with shops and restaurants but walk a block away from the beach and you're next to buildings that are centuries old.  The Convent of the Dominicans (built in 1547) still has nuns who have taken a vow of silence.  On the next street is the Misericordia Chapel which has a crucifix the Spanish used to smuggle gold from the New World.  They reasoned pirates would never desecrate it and I guess, pirates do have a code of honour as it was left intact.

Our tour ended at the Town Hall and our guide said we were on our own.  Glen and I wandered along the beach wall and returned to the bus.  Glen wanted to watch us leave port so we ate supper on the pool deck after sampling what the buffet had to offer.  The sunset was spectacular.  A
fter attempting to take photos through the glass, I ran downstairs to our cabin and got better shots from our balcony.  Must say the tropical sun makes for very dramatic photos.

To see these, you can view my Vigo album here.